ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Public Forest Estate

Hilary Benn: The Forestry Commission manages over 250,000 hectares of land in England and provides a unique national asset delivering many benefits. These include protecting and enhancing the natural environment, providing economic opportunities and helping to improve the quality of people's lives. Since 1997 the Forestry Commission has been able to buy and sell land in order to increase the public benefits on the public forest estate.
	Last year we published our strategy for England's trees, woods and forests and the time is right to consider how the public forest estate might respond to the strategy. I have therefore asked the Forestry Commission to carry out a study of the future long-term sustainable role of the public forest estate in England and to make recommendations.
	The Commission's England National Committee will act as the governing body for the study, establishing a working group from relevant key stakeholders, including DEFRA.
	The terms of reference for the study are:
	To consider the future long-term sustainable role for the public forest estate making recommendations about any necessary changes to improve its ability to deliver relevant priorities in the strategy for England's trees woods and forests and contribute to other Government objectives.
	The study will be grounded in our sustainable development strategy, "Securing the Future", and there will be a full public consultation.

HOME DEPARTMENT

Tasers

Jacqui Smith: Each day police officers put themselves in danger to protect the public, so I am committed to providing the police with the tools they tell me they need to fight crime and keep the public and themselves safe. I am also proud that we have one of the few police services around the world that do not regularly carry firearms and I want to keep it that way.
	Therefore I am today giving my agreement to allow chief officers of all forces in England and Wales, from 1 December 2008, to extend Taser use to specially trained units in accordance with Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) policy and guidance. The guidance sets out that Taser can only be used where officers would be facing violence or threats of violence of such severity that they would need to use force to protect the public, themselves and/or the subject(s).
	I am also making funding available to forces to support the purchase of up to 10,000 Tasers. This will allow chief officers to take a decision on Taser deployment according to operational need, without being encumbered by financial restrictions.
	Tasers are making a real difference on our streets, not only keeping the public safe but also protecting our police officers. Taser has been available to all authorised firearms officers since September 2004 as a less lethal alternative for use in situations where a firearms authority has been granted in accordance with criteria laid down in the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) "Manual of Guidance on Police Use of Firearms".
	Since 20 July 2007 authorised firearms officers in England and Wales have also been able to use Taser in a wider set of circumstances. These officers are now able to deploy Taser in operations or incidents where the use of firearms is not authorised, but where they are facing violence or threats of violence of such severity that they would need to use force to protect the public, themselves or the subject.
	In July 2007 I also gave my approval for a 12-month trial of the deployment of Taser by specially trained units, who are not firearms officers, in circumstances where officers were facing violence or threats of violence of such severity that they would need to use force to protect the public, themselves or the subject. The trial commenced on 1 September 2007 in 10 forces: Avon and Somerset, Devon and Cornwall, Gwent, Lincolnshire, Merseyside, Metropolitan Police Service, Northamptonshire, Northumbria, North Wales and West Yorkshire.
	Independent medical advice was sought from the Defence Scientific Advisory Council (DSAC) Sub-Committee on the Medical Implications of Less Lethal Weapons (DOMILL) on the use of Taser in these extended circumstances. DOMILL has now provided a fifth statement on the medical implications of the use of Taser.
	The DOMILL statement assesses the risk of death or serious injury from use of the M26 and X26 Tasers within ACPO guidance and policy as very low.
	Having considered the latest DOMILL statement and reports on the trial from ACPO and the Home Office Scientific Development Branch which provide final figures on Taser use in the trial, I have given my agreement for further roll-out.
	All Taser deployments will also continue to be monitored for assessment by DOMILL. We will continue to publish Taser usage figures on a regular basis.
	I have placed a copy of the latest DOMILL statement, and the Home Office Scientific Development Branch trial evaluation in the Library of the House.

JUSTICE

Data Protection (Information Commissioner)

Michael Wills: I am today publishing the Government's response to the Data Sharing Review and the response to the Ministry of Justice's consultation on the Information Commissioner's inspection powers and funding under the Data Protection Act 1998.
	The protection of personal data will always be a high priority and we know that good regulation is essential to support a robust data protection framework. We believe that, although the current regulatory framework does not require sweeping changes, more can, and must be done to ensure that the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) has the powers and resources necessary to carry out its duties under the Data Protection Act. The tools available to the ICO must be flexible enough to meet a range of circumstances and encourage good practice, allowing it to take firm and assertive action when necessary.
	The use of information underpins Government's ability to deliver benefits for the citizen through targeted and improved public services, opportunities for the most disadvantaged, protection from crime and terrorism and economic well-being. However we can only do this successfully when we are able to increase public confidence in the sharing and handling of personal data by both the public and private sectors. The proposals as outlined in the two documents being published today will contribute toward that process.
	We will increase the powers, penalties and funding available to the ICO by specifically proposing to:
	develop the ICO's inspection powers in respect of public authorities so as to enable the ICO to inspect without necessarily requiring prior consent;
	allow the ICO to impose a deadline and location for the provision of information necessary to assess compliance;
	allow the ICO to require any person on the premises, where a warrant is being executed, to provide any information required to determine whether the data controller has complied with, or is complying with, the data protection principles;
	mandate the ICO to publish guidance on when organisations should notify the ICO of breaches of the data protection principles; and
	alter the ICO funding structure from a flat rate notification fee to a tiered-fee structure based on size of organisation, providing additional funds for the ICO in a more equitable funding structure.
	In addition, to reinforce the framework within which we can safely share data and deliver benefits for the public, we propose to:
	place a statutory duty on the ICO to publish a data sharing code of practice in order to provide practical guidance on how to share personal data in accordance with the requirements of the Data Protection Act and to promote good practice in the sharing of personal data; and
	confer a power upon the Secretary of State to permit or require the sharing of personal information between particular specified persons, where a robust case for doing so exists.
	To further strengthen the powers available to the ICO, we are working on bringing fully into force section 55A of the Data Protection Act, introduced in the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008 but not yet commenced. This will allow the ICO to impose monetary penalties on data controllers in the case of serious contraventions of the Data Protection Act.
	The additional powers for the ICO will ensure the regulatory framework is robust, proportionate and encourage good practice. These measures will increase public confidence in the handling and sharing of data by the public and private sectors.
	Copies of both the Government's response to the Data Sharing Review and the response to the Ministry of Justice's consultation on the Information Commissioner's inspection powers and funding under the Data Protection Act 1998 will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses. Copies will also be available in the Vote Office and the Printed Paper Office.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Equality 2025: the UK Advisory Network on Disability Equality

Jonathan R Shaw: Equality 2025: the United Kingdom Advisory Network on Disability Equality was established in December 2006, from a recommendation in the Prime Minister's strategy unit report "Improving the life chances of disabled people" which suggested that the Government should set up a new mechanism to involve disabled people in the heart of policy-making. It is working with Government to help it achieve the aim of equality for disabled people by 2025.
	Equality 2025 was set up with no formal chair, as the group was keen to offer this opportunity to all members on rotation. However, in December 2007 members agreed they would like a formal chair. An acting chair has been in place since then, while the recruitment exercise has taken place.
	The recruitment exercise was carried out in accordance with the standards set by the Office for the Commissioner of Public Appointments. The quality of applicants for the post was exceptionally high. I am pleased to announce that the successful candidate and new chair of Equality 2025 from 1 December 2008 is Rowen Jade.
	Rowen Jade has been a member of Equality 2025 since it was established, and has been acting chair since December 2007. I am confident she will lead the group forward during an interesting and challenging time.